Learn French: Apportez des verres et du vin. - Bring some glasses and wine.

Apportez des verres et du vin.

Bring some glasses and wine.

Breakdown of Apportez des verres et du vin.

and

des

some (plural indefinite)

some (partitive, masculine)

le verre

the glass / the drink

Questions & Answers about Apportez des verres et du vin.

Why is there no word for "you" before Apportez?

This sentence is a command or request, which uses the imperative mood. In French, just like in English, you drop the subject pronoun (like vous) when giving a command. You just start right with the verb: Apportez (Bring).

How do we know who is being told to bring the glasses?

Because the verb ends in -ez (Apportez), we know it is the vous form of the verb. This means the speaker is either addressing a group of people (plural "you") or speaking politely and formally to one person.

Why do we use des before verres but du before vin?

Both words translate to "some" here, but they are used for different types of nouns. Des is used for plural things you can count, like verres (glasses). Du is used for masculine singular things you cannot easily count, like a mass or liquid such as vin (wine).

Can I just say Apportez verres et vin without the des and du?

No, in French you almost always need an article before a noun. Even though we frequently say "Bring glasses and wine" in English without the word "some", you must keep des and du in French.